UPDATE 1-Oshkosh gets $438 mln US order, Gates to visit

* Oshkosh praised by officials for production effort

* Defense Secretary Gates vising plant on Thursday

* Shares close 3.2 pct higher, up 353 pct this year (Adds detail on medium truck contract challenge; updates share movement)

By Jim Wolf

WASHINGTON, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Oshkosh Corp (OSK.N), ahead of a congratulatory visit from U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates, said on Wednesday it had received a fresh, $438 million order for Afghanistan-bound armored trucks.

The order, the fifth in a series, was for 1,000 all-terrain vehicles designed to withstand roadside bombs and handle Afghanistan's rugged countryside, a company statement said.

Gates is to visit Oshkosh's manufacturing plant on Thursday, in the Wisconsin city from which it takes its name, to showcase its work on what the Pentagon calls the urgently needed mine-resistant, ambush-protected vehicles, or MRAPs.

The Defense Department is highlighting the company as an example of efficient, scalable production as it pushes other military contractors to do better at equipping U.S. forces for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"The secretary wants to thank the workers there for doing everything they can to expedite the production of this life-saving vehicle," Geoff Morrell, the Pentagon press secretary, said last week.